Cerebral palsy football, also called ''7-a-side football'' or formerly ''Paralympic football'', is an adaptation of association football for
athlete
An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance.
Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-devel ...
s with
cerebral palsy
Cerebral palsy (CP) is a group of movement disorders that appear in early childhood. Signs and symptoms vary among people and over time, but include poor coordination, stiff muscles, weak muscles, and tremors. There may be problems with sensa ...
and other neurological disorders, including
stroke
A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...
and
traumatic brain injury
A traumatic brain injury (TBI), also known as an intracranial injury, is an injury to the brain caused by an external force. TBI can be classified based on severity (ranging from mild traumatic brain injury TBI/concussionto severe traumatic b ...
. From 1978 to 2014, cerebral palsy football was governed by the
Cerebral Palsy International Sports and Recreation Association
The Cerebral Palsy International Sports and Recreation Association ( CPISRA) is an international sports and recreation association for cerebral palsy and related neurological conditions. CPISRA organise recreational opportunities, develop adaptiv ...
(CPISRA). In January 2015, governance of the sport was taken over by the
International Federation of Cerebral Palsy Football
O bafolopteco é maluco International Federation of Cerebral Palsy Football (IFCPF) is the world governing body for cerebral palsy football. It was founded in January 2015, when the governance of the sport transferred from the Cerebral Palsy Int ...
, under the umbrella of ''Para Football''.
The sport is played with modified FIFA rules. Among the modifications are a reduced field of play, a reduction in the number of players, elimination of the
offside rule, and permission for one-handed
throw-in
A throw-in is a method of restarting play in a game of association football when the ball has exited the side of the field of play. It is governed by Law 15 of The Laws of the Game.
Award
When the ball goes out of play past the touch-line ...
s. Matches consist of two thirty-minute halves, with a fifteen-minute half-time break. Teams must field at least one class C5 or C6 player at all times. No more than one players of class C8 are permitted to play at the same time.
International competition in 7-a-side football began at the 1978 CP-ISRA International Games in
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
,
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
. The sport was added to the Summer
Paralympic Games
The Paralympic Games or Paralympics, also known as the ''Games of the Paralympiad'', is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of physical disabilities, including impaired muscle power and impaire ...
at the
1984 Summer Paralympics
The 1984 International Games for the Disabled, canonically the 1984 Summer Paralympics were the seventh Paralympic Games to be held. There were two separate competitions: one in Stoke Mandeville, England, United Kingdom for wheelchair athletes ...
in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
,
U.S.
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
, and has been played at every Summer Games since.
Governance
From 1978 to 2014, cerebral palsy football was governed by the
Cerebral Palsy International Sports and Recreation Association
The Cerebral Palsy International Sports and Recreation Association ( CPISRA) is an international sports and recreation association for cerebral palsy and related neurological conditions. CPISRA organise recreational opportunities, develop adaptiv ...
(CPISRA). In January 2015, governance of the sport was taken over by the
International Federation of Cerebral Palsy Football
O bafolopteco é maluco International Federation of Cerebral Palsy Football (IFCPF) is the world governing body for cerebral palsy football. It was founded in January 2015, when the governance of the sport transferred from the Cerebral Palsy Int ...
.
Different organizations govern the sport on a national level. In Australia, the sport is governed by Football Federation Australia, with the sport also having state governing bodies in the country. For New South Wales, this is Cerebral Palsy Sporting and Recreation Association NSW. In Queensland, it is Football Queensland. The sport is overseen by Football Federation South Australia in South Australia. In Victoria, it is run by Disability Sport and Recreation. In Western Australia, the sport is governed by Football West. In the Australian Capital Territory, the sport is governed by Capital Football. In Tasmania, the sport is run by Disability Sport and Recreation.
Rule modifications
While CP football generally follows many of the rules of association football, the sport includes a few modifications.
These rules include a lack of an offside rule, and players being allowed to throw in the ball using only one hand.
Throw-in
A throw-in is a method of restarting play in a game of association football when the ball has exited the side of the field of play. It is governed by Law 15 of The Laws of the Game.
Award
When the ball goes out of play past the touch-line ...
s can be done using an underhand technique.
The game is also shorter, featuring two 30-minute halves with a 15-minute halftime break.
It also includes only 7 players on the field for each team during play.
The goal and the field are also smaller than the non-disability association football game.
The field is 75 meters by 55 meters.
In tournament competition, playoff and finals games that end in a draw following regulation time have extra time added. This extra time consists of two 10-minute periods, where the first goal scored wins the game. If there is still a draw following those 20 minutes of play, a penalty shoot out takes place. 5 players from each time attempt to score from the place where penalty kicks take place. The team with the most goals following 5 shots each wins.
Classification
Four classes participate in the sport.
These classes are
FT5,
FT6,
FT7 and
FT8
FT8 or Franke & Taylor 8 is a frequency shift keying digital mode which was released on June 29, 2017, by the creators Joe Taylor, K1JT and Steve Franke, K9AN along with the software package WSJT.Burmester, Dale March 12, 2019. Amateur Radio Dig ...
.
The type of disability for each class is:
*FT5: Athletes with difficulties when walking and running, but not in standing or when kicking the ball.
*FT6: Athletes with control and co-ordination problems of their upper limbs, especially when running.
*FT7: Athletes with
hemiplegia
Hemiparesis, or unilateral paresis, is weakness of one entire side of the body ('' hemi-'' means "half"). Hemiplegia is, in its most severe form, complete paralysis of half of the body. Hemiparesis and hemiplegia can be caused by different medic ...
.
*FT8: Minimally disabled athletes; they must meet eligibility criteria and have an obvious impairment that has impact on the sport of football.
Originally, classification for the sport was only open to people with cerebral palsy, but the classification system as later changed. This opened up the sport to people with brain injuries and other motor function disorders with functional participation similar to that of people with cerebral palsy.
Teams must field at least one class C5 or C6 player at all times. No more than one players of class C8 are permitted to play at the same time.
Spreading
The following nations have a football national team:
;Africa : Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Tunisia
;America : Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Canada, Colombia, Mexico, USA, Venezuela
;Asia :
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
, China, India, Iran, Japan, Jordan, Korea, Macao, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates
;Europe : Belgium, Denmark, Germany, England, Finland, France, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Northern Ireland, Portugal, Austria, Russia, Scotland, Spain, Turkey, Ukraine and Wales
Major world competitions
The sport has several major competitions. These include the IFCPF CP Football World Championships, former the CPISRA Football-7-a-Side World Championships.
The first CPISRA World Championships took place in Denmark in 1982, four years after the first international competition for the sport took place in Scotland at the
Cerebral Palsy International Games.
7-a-side football was also played at the Paralympic Games, making its debut at the
1984 Summer Paralympics
The 1984 International Games for the Disabled, canonically the 1984 Summer Paralympics were the seventh Paralympic Games to be held. There were two separate competitions: one in Stoke Mandeville, England, United Kingdom for wheelchair athletes ...
.
It was dropped from the Paralympic program for the
2020 Summer Paralympics
The , branded as the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, was an international multi-sport parasports event held from 24 August to 5 September 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. They were the 16th Summer Paralympic Games as organized by the International Paralym ...
.
Summer Paralympics
:
1 = ''The tournament was played in a group mode.''
*''a.e.t.'': after extra time
*''p'': after penalty shoot-out
World CP Football Championships
:2 = ''There is no information on the homepage of the IFCPF''
:3 = ''no score found''
*''a.e.t.'': after extra time
*''p'': after penalty shoot-out
Regional competitions
* Africa: to date, there have been no international championships in Africa since there are too few teams.
* Oceania: to date there have been no international championships in Oceania as there are too few teams. There are only two members of the IFCPF in Oceania: Australia and New Zealand. Australia has participated in the European World Cup 2010 except for competition.
Pan American Championships
:
AM1 = ''The tournament was played in a group mode.''
:
AM2 = ''no score found''
*''a.e.t.'': after extra time
*''p'': after penalty shoot-out
Asian Championships
:
AS1 = ''The tournament was played in a group mode.''
*''a.e.t.'': after extra time
*''p'': after penalty shoot-out
European Championships
:
EU1 = ''no score found''
*''a.e.t.'': after extra time
*''p'': after penalty shoot-out
ASEAN Para Games
:
ASE1 = ''The tournament was played in a group mode.''
*''a.e.t.'': after extra time
*''p'': after penalty shoot-out
See also
*
International Federation of Cerebral Palsy Football
O bafolopteco é maluco International Federation of Cerebral Palsy Football (IFCPF) is the world governing body for cerebral palsy football. It was founded in January 2015, when the governance of the sport transferred from the Cerebral Palsy Int ...
*
Cerebral Palsy Games
*
IWAS World Games
The International Wheelchair and Amputee Sports (IWAS) World Games (or IWAS World Games) are a multi-sport competition for athletes with a disability, which were the forerunner of the Paralympic Games. The competition has been formerly known as t ...
References
External links
Homepage der International Federation of Cerebral Palsy Football
{{Main world championships
*
Association football variants
Cerebral palsy and other paralytic syndromes